


Soft No

by OrionRedde, Shyrstyne



Series: Cometverse [9]
Category: Kingdom Hearts
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Game: Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days, Nonbinary Character, Other, Pre-Relationship, axel makes a pass and respects the answer, minor references to sex and sexual urges, two aces write a bisaster
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-25
Updated: 2019-03-25
Packaged: 2019-12-07 17:10:34
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,364
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18237824
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/OrionRedde/pseuds/OrionRedde, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Shyrstyne/pseuds/Shyrstyne
Summary: You work hard to perfect your abilities, and practically glow with pride when you get it just right.





	Soft No

**Author's Note:**

> this takes place roughly around day 100 for reference. also we're sorry but neither of us really knows how allosexuals work so uh.. we tried our best. also also *hopefully* this is the last of the 358 era fics but.... well i said that back when there was only ONE 358 fic soooooo. We'll see I guess XD

It’s your day off.

The sun is doing it’s long, slow curve over the horizon, and you know you’ll have at least a few more hours of light before it vanishes entirely, but it’s late enough you hope that you’ll attract a minimum of attention. You wind your way through the streets, past the outer walls, and out into the surrounding trees, trying to be as inconspicuous as possible.

You come out into an open field, flat and free of obstructions, surrounded by tall evergreens on every side. It was perfect. You’d scouted this place out a few days ago, but hadn’t really had the chance to get out since. There was an idea percolating in your mind, one that you’d first had the inspiration for back in Traverse Town but hadn’t had the space to really test until now. Even here you didn’t want curious noses poking in and accidentally getting hurt while you perfected this idea of yours.

You could feel a storm on the edge of your senses; it wasn’t headed this way, but it was close enough to send electric tingles across your skin. All the better.

Lightning gathers around you, and you consider how to channel it, now that you’re putting thought into action. You do a couple of hops forward, testing momentum and how the lightning you hold moves with it.

Okay.

You move to the edge of the clearing, facing inward, gather the electric field around you and  _ leap _

You skid to a stop, fizzling and popping, adrenaline running, and look back.

Five feet.

Not bad for a first try. The lack of balance coming out of the dash was a problem though, as was the wide scorch marks left where you’d jumped. You think you can work on the balance thing, with refinement and practice, but you’re not sure what to do about the scorching.

You spend the evening like this, until it’s well past dark and you have to admit to yourself that it’s not safe to be doing this when you can’t see. Not to mention the crackles of lightning only grow more obvious in the dark, and you don’t want anyone stumbling across you while you’re testing.

So you go home, and you work, and you wait for your next chance.

Again, and again.

Five feet increases to ten, and to fifteen, and to twenty. You manage nearly a hundred one time but you tumble out of it and eat dirt so hard you’re tasting it for three days after, and resign yourself to working up to that length- if it’s even possible to maintain it. You haven’t been able to manage it since.

The wobble you get coming out of the dash is particularly frustrating. You’ve managed to maintain an awareness of where you’re going, and given enough time you can even course correct now, but you’re always left just slightly off balance after and you know the dash is more or less useless unless you can fix that.

So you keep going out, always in the twilight hours of evening, and practice. Pushing the limits of the ability and honing it, doing it over and over again and trying different stances and changes attempting to fix it.

It has been  _ weeks _ .

In one particularly frustrated moment you pick up a rock a throw it as hard as you can, wrapping it in lightning so it makes a satisfying  _ zap _ when it hits the ground. You know this has to be possible, but you’re still not sure what you’re doing wrong.

Okay, you think, standing from where you’d taken a break to contemplate. Maybe you need to slow it down a bit, see where the problem is before you can fix it. You set yourself into position, and gather the lightning once more, willing wisps of it away, to fizzle outward, and hold it there. 

Slow, you think.  _ Slow. _

Lightning is not naturally inclined to  _ slow _ , but when you burst forward this time the movement isn’t quite so heart poundingly fast, but you also go a  _ lot _ farther. You nearly circle the glade before the lightning you hold around you fizzles out and you swing your legs forward as you grind to a stop. 

Oh. 

Oh!

You grin widely and then cackle with delight as two discoveries hit you at once. You gather the lightning once more and burst forward in a high velocity dash, swinging your legs forward at the last second and hopping into a short run as you come out of it. That was it! That was all you were missing. You laugh with delight, lightning zapping around you in response to your glee, and burst into another dash. Another! Another! Joy and pride bubble inside you as you delight in your new mastery in the only way you know how. 

You dash across the clearing again, but this time there’s someone there. Three someone’s.

You don’t have time to consider who or why as you push off the ground as hard as you can, sailing over their heads and tumbling hard on the other side, knocking the wind from your lungs. Apparently emergency course corrections were going to be the next thing you were going to work on, you think ruefully as you cough and groan into the dirt. 

  
  
  


None of them were expecting the ball of electricity to be launched at them as they entered the clearing, least of all Axel who’s leading Roxas and Xion through the trees. He has his chakrams out and shielding near instantly but thankfully he doesn’t need them as the crackling ball suddenly leaps over them. For a moment the world slows and he sees Comet, eyes wide and power flowing through them, scars alight from within, as they leap over their heads. 

There’s beauty and grace in that kind of power, the kind he appreciates, that he’s worked for most of his own life. 

Then they tumble, coming to a decidedly ungraceful finish as they hit the ground. He winces internally. 

“Was that Larxene?” Roxas asks, bewildered. Axel shakes his head. 

“Larxene was eliminated, remember? Nah I think that’s-“

“The person from the ice cream place!” Xion puts the pieces together first. Comet sits up, coughing roughly and spitting grass. They’d winded themselves hard with that fall, judging by the wheezing coughs they take as they sit up. 

“Jeez guys,” they give a breathless laugh as they get their breath back and stand, brushing grass and dirt from now torn clothing. “Gave me a bit of a scare, I wasn’t expecting anyone out here.”

“We saw weird flashes while we were having ice cream, I wanted to see what it was. Sorry.” Xion says. 

“Ah it’s no big. We all probably should have been more careful.” They admit sheepishly. 

“What were you doing?” Roxas asks. “That was lightning right? It looked like Larxene’s.”

They quirk their head, but Axel interrupts. 

“I doubt it. Larxene was different, remember?” 

“Oh, right.”

“Unless this Larxene was using wild magic, then yeah, it might look similar, but not the same. It’s all about how you use your mana and what your power source is.” Comet supplies. 

“Can you show us?” Xion entreats, eager to learn. They laugh. 

“Sure, but try not to copy it okay, wild magic is dangerous stuff, and should definitely be done with supervision.”

“ _ You  _ don’t have any.” Axel points out. 

“Yeah, don’t be me. I learned this the  _ hard _ way and I don’t recommend it. Anyway you guys wanna see what I just made or not?”

“Yeah!” Roxas grins. 

“Show us!” Xion says, just as bright. 

Axel just makes an ‘after you’ gesture. 

They move a short distance into the field, confidence rolling off them. They settle into a run stance, lightning cracks around them, and then he barely even sees them move, suddenly skidding to a stop on the far side of the field, grinning and eyes alight. The dash back, clearly showing off now, hand on their hips as bolts flicker around and the ground around them scorches. They strike a pose, doing a few more dashes in quick succession.

They’re beautiful. 

Axel has to inspect that thought for a second. 

_ “Lea look, I managed to-“ _

He shakes his head as he watches Comet jog back to them, full of joy and pride. It’s just the memory of a feeling, nothing more. He always had found pride in one's own abilities attractive. But a memory and physical attraction do not a feeling make. No matter how tenuously genuine it might seem. 

Still, he thinks as Roxas and Xion badger Comet with questions, he can appreciate their skill and form as they move. He takes in their joy practically glowing off them from a job well done and feels something stir inside. 

….

It’s not in his chest though. 

He coughs awkwardly, turning his head away and distantly award he should be grateful he doesn’t have enough feelings to be properly embarrassed or he would likely have been a blushing mess at the realization he’s just had. 

Comet and the kids turn to him at the sound. 

“We uh, should probably go, now that we’ve figured out the mysterious lights.” He spins off the top of his head. He’s not even wrong either, the sun has very nearly finished setting, leaving a coat of deepening darkness in its wake. “We all have work to do tomorrow and it only gets harder the less sleep you get.”

Roxas and Xion pout but reluctantly agree, and Comet just nods. 

“He’s right, sleep is important, especially for growing kids.” They lift their hand like they want to ruffle Roxas’ hair but then thinks better of it, turning it into an absent minded gesture instead. “I’m still glad I saw you guys though, even if I almost accidentally ran you over.”

Roxas and Xion laugh, and as Comet turns towards town Axel has a thought. 

“Hey you guys go ahead and RTC. Comet, you mind if I walk you back?” That was what people did, right? Maybe he hadn’t quite reached that age before getting hit with the whole nobody thing but he recalls that being a thing people did. 

“Oh I got a gentleman on my hands, huh? Sure I don’t mind the company, but I hope you’re not expecting a blushing damsel in response.” They grin and he chuckles as he waves Roxas and Xion off. They vanish into the trees just far enough away that Comet won’t see them as they portal back to the castle. 

“After that display back there? I’d be disappointed.” He says. 

“Well we can’t have that after all.” The two of them walk towards the looming walls of the town in the rapidly dwindling light. 

“It’d just crush my poor, nonexistent heart you know.”  _ Too close _ , Axel, he thinks, but Comet doesn’t seem to think anything of it, laughing lightly. 

“Oh don’t try to pull the ‘I’m a heartless bastard’ thing on me, I’ve seen you being sweet with those kids way too often for that.”

He just laughs. He hopes it doesn’t come out as too bitter.

By the time they make it to the walls it’s fully dark, and Comet hunts for the locks on the doors, cursing softly.

“Can never find these stars forsaken-”

Axel snaps his fingers, creating a small but consistent flame over his hand and hovering it over where Comet’s standing.

“Okay showoff, you gonna light the way home with that fire too?” They say, easily finding the latches now that they can see, and pulling the door open.

“Sure, and then maybe I can light  _ your _ fire.” He says, putting as much sauce into his grin as he thinks he can get away with, leaning against the wall suggestively and fire still dancing across his hands. It doesn’t have the effect he hopes, as they laugh delightedly.

“Oh, that’s amazing! Wait wait, hang on I’ll come up with something-” They giggle helplessly as they move through the doors and into the Town proper. “Ah fuck, nah I got nothin. I’ll have to remember that though, that was good.”

“Only the best from me.” He grins. It might be a soft no but he’s not entirely sure. 

“I’m glad we both have an appreciation for dumb pickup lines.” They giggle as they wander through the streets. “They’re just so entertaining.”

“Hey now. I didn’t think it was  _ that _ dumb.” He pouts exaggeratedly, and they smack his arm with fondness.

“All pickup lines are dumb, dude, obviously. That’s what makes them great.”

“Ah of course, my mistake.” He chuckles. 

“Or you could come in and be  _ my _ mistake.” They waggle their eyebrows and then dissolve into giggles again. It’s infectious somehow, and he finds himself grinning along. “See? They’re so fucking dumb, I love them.”

The banter is smooth, and casual, and he thinks he would have liked Comet immensely if he’d managed to hang onto his heart long enough to truly know them. He pushes the thoughts and the memories aside, as they slowly walk through town, stopping at a small apartment complex on the fringes.

“Thanks for keeping me company.” They say gratefully. “I had fun.”

“No problem, unless you’d like to have a little more fun upstairs?” One more shot, he figures. Comet snorts as they pull out their building key, he recognizes it as one of those temp places set up for housing transients.

“That one was lame, you can do better. Thanks again though, I wouldn’t mind hanging out again sometime.” And with that they turn inside and shut the door. He takes the no for what it is. Ah well, another body against his would have been nice, but he’s got no interest in being where he’s not wanted, and he can always take care of himself later. It won’t be the first time and it would hardly be the last.

The walk was nice though, he’ll admit that. He has enough friendships on his plate to deal with already however, and he doesn’t know if he can honestly juggle another one with Saïx breathing down his neck like he has been lately.

Ah well.

**Author's Note:**

> Comet get their 'dumb bih who doesn't pick up on flirting' gene from both of us. It's probably for the best, as they're solidly on the demi scale of gray-ace and wouldn't be into it (yet) anyways.


End file.
